Load-out of first fabrication job scheduled in September
MUSCAT -- Development of a modular fabrication yard at the Port of Sohar reaches a major milestone with the scheduled 'load-out' next month of its maiden fabrication job -- an offshore structure for India's Oil & Natural Gas Commission (ONGC). The load-out will effectively mark the commercial launch of Oman's first such specialised yard dedicated to the manufacture of offshore structures, according to a top executive of L&T Modular Fabrication Yard LLC (L&T MFY), a joint venture of Larsen & Toubro Limited (L&T) -- India's largest engineering and construction conglomerate -- and The Zubair Corporation of Oman.
"The load-out of the ONGC job in September will mark the commercialisation of the yard," said K Venkataramanan, L&T President (Operations) and Chairman of L&T MFY. "This first ever job will also help us prequalify the yard for other major fabrication contracts that we are targeting in the region," he added in remarks to the Observer. Development of the specialist fabrication facility is "progressing very well", Venkataramanan said. "Phase 1 of the project is an advanced stage of construction. As part of the yard infrastructure, we are installing rolling machines, pipe contouring equipment, and establishing a pipe shop.
A number of heavy cranes, each of 250-ton capacity, are also being shipped to Oman and will arrive at site in Sohar by early September. Several other smaller cranes are already in place." Last November, L&T MFY signed agreements with the government as well as with the Sohar Industrial Port Company (SIPC) -- landlord-operator of the Port of Sohar -- for the establishment of the modular fabrication yard at a dedicated site within the port. Set on an area of 400,000 sq metres, the fabrication yard is being equipped for heavy structural fabrication, sophisticated equipment and systems integration and testing, and load-out of ultra-large modules.
The facility has a capacity to produce about 50,000 tonnes of modular goods per year, primarily for the offshore oil and gas industry. The government and SIPC are supporting the venture by developing the waterfront and marine infrastructure required for the project. Besides earmarking a 100-hectare plot at the industrial port, the government has also dedicated a 300-metre-long quay wall for the yard. A 100-metre length of this quay wall will be strengthened to cater for the handling of ultra heavy loads.
L&T MFY's first job in hand involves the fabrication of piles for an ONGC offshore structure which is being predominantly handled at L&T's facilities at Hazira in India. Upon the completion of this contract, L&T MFY's will then commence work on its first major commercial contract -- the fabrication of a flare jacket and flare deck for a platform destined for a Maersk Oil project in Qatar. "The yard will be fully operational by around mid-January, by which time the quay wall facilities will also have been completed by SIPC. Also by then, the yard machinery will be full operational as well, allowing for the start of work on the Maersk project," said Venkataramanan.
The Company, he further added, was in the process of getting the yard approved by major potential customers in the region, such as Saudi Aramco, as well a host of UAE-based parties. "The yard is capable of executing fabrication jobs similar to what yards in Singapore and Abu Dhabi can accomplish. We hope the Sohar yard will be a useful facility in the region serving the offshore oil and gas industry, as well as the onshore market as well.
L&T MFY's fabrication capabilities cover a range of complex plants including integrated decks from 10,000 to 20,000 tonnes, jack-up rigs and FPSOs (Floating Production Storage & Offloading vessels). Also planned for manufacture at the yard are large jacket structures, process platforms, and pre-assembled units such as pipe-racks and skid-mounted equipment. An exclusive heavy load-out facility will allow for the shipment of very large plant assemblies for the oil and gas, and other industrial sectors.
In line with its commitment to recruiting Omanis as part of its technical workforce, the company has signed up an initial batch of 30 nationals for training at the Vocational Training Institute in Saham. A further 60 Omanis will start a similar round of training later this year. Around 120 technically qualified Omanis will form part of the company's workforce within three years of the launch of commercial operations. In concluding, Venkataramanan praised the "forward looking" approach of the Omani government, SIPC and the company's joint venture partner The Zubair Corporation in supporting the project through to fruition.
By Conrad Prabhu
© Oman Daily Observer 2007
